


Everyone is Fine

by flowersalesman



Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Empress Undyne, Established Relationship, Everyone Has Issues, Everyone is Dead, F/M, I'm Sorry, Monsters on the Surface, Post-Neutral Route (Undertale), Sans Has Issues, Toriel has Issues, War Between Monsters and Humans, i'm not sure if the summary really sums up the story but w/e, no one is free, scared children
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-01-22
Updated: 2016-02-07
Packaged: 2018-05-15 17:02:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,197
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5792695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/flowersalesman/pseuds/flowersalesman
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Years after Frisk left the Underground with dust on their hands, Undyne lives up to her promise after she obtains a human soul, and a new war begins.</p><p>Meanwhile, Sans and Toriel are living in seclusion in the forest near Mt Ebott when a child stumbles upon their camp. He is ten years old and wears a striped shirt and he is terrified of monsters because his town was the first one attacked after the barrier fell. Toriel loves him after a day. Sans isn't sure he can trust another human after what the last one did.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. human

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [rot & replace](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5709439) by [hapsby](https://archiveofourown.org/users/hapsby/pseuds/hapsby). 



> **The Empress Undyne ending-** Undyne and Toriel are the only ones who live. Toriel tries to take over, but her passive human policy doesn't set well anyone and the monsters start a rebellion with Undyne as the leader. Undyne becomes empress, promises to kill any human that falls, seeks revenge on Frisk, blah blah blah, and she banishes Toriel back to the ruins. Sans goes with her.
> 
> Warnings- I didn't plan anything in this story I'm not sure where I'm going to take it or even if I'm going to continue it. btw the kid in this story probably has PTSD or something idk.
> 
> (ALSO- it is very clear that i lack organizational skills i'm sorry about that)

He was lost in the woods.

Well, that wasn’t exactly right- to be lost, he must have a home, somewhere to be found. That is not the case any longer. His home was destroyed when the Empress Undyne invaded the surface and killed six humans from his town, and it was lost when the old barrier broke and the monsters returned with her.

He didn’t know where his family was. He didn’t know if he had a family anymore. He didn’t know why the monsters returned with cries of sorrow instead of revenge (not to say there was a lack of that, either). The only person who could have known was the elderly Frisk, who was the only human to fall to Mt Ebott and survive with tales of their heroic adventure, but they were the first human that the Empress Undyne had killed (and the only human she had personally sought out, too. He remembered the tales Frisk had told everyone and wondered if he should have been surprised).

That, however, was months ago. His town was the first to be overrun. He fled. The second war between humans and monsters had officially begun.  
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-  
And now he was lost in the woods. Honestly, it wasn’t that bad; this was apparently the season for fruits and berries, and summer camp had taught him how to build a temporary night-long shelter from sticks and leaves. He avoided stagnant water, and filtered what he found as best as he could. He was doing perfectly fine.

There was no one else.

(He was perfectly fine.)

The last time he talked to someone was… well…

(He was perfectly fine.)  


It was a monster, and it got up close, and it opened its mouth-

(he was perfec tly fine.)

it screamed, then, asking why he needs to be so cruel, why humans have to be so soulless even with their souls-

(he wa s per fect ly f i n e)

and he begged the monster for mercy because he didn’t do anything he was just a kid he was only ten he’s wearing a striped sweater and i t w a s n ‘ t h i s f a u l t

_(h e w a s p e r f e c t l y f i n e)_

Yes, he surmised, the forest wasn’t so bad. Really, the only thing he can complain about is the ground. It makes it hard for him to sleep.

(He is doing okay, because believing this is the only way he can keep what little determination he has.)

\------------------------------------------------------

Sans doesn’t really know what to think of the recent war. He knows that Toriel is infuriated, because she remembers when humans were friends and she remembers the children she loved and she cannot help but love the rest of the race because of this.

Sans only knew one of the humans very well, very personally, from many perspectives, and he always wonders why out of all the timelines they created they chose to stick with the one where they killed nearly everyone they came across. Logically, he realizes that he shouldn’t judge an entire race based on the actions of one—but he is a pessimist at heart, and he knows that there are many on the surface just like them, and he thinks of how even if they all managed to get to the top peacefully the humans would probably not want them there anyway.

He and Toriel never talk about it. They know that she is against it and he doesn’t have the power to be against it, and they live with unsaid words floating in the air between them because neither of them can stand to hear about what the other thinks of the war.

(But they also live with smiles and jokes and laughs and warm hugs and finally, finally being able to look at the stars and though they don’t talk about this they talk about other things and he thinks it’s okay if they keep this topic to themselves.)  
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-  
The last human to fall down—the human whose soul Undyne had taken—was a bright, fiery orange. It hurt Sans to look at them.

The human hadn’t killed anything, as far as he was aware, but that was mostly because there wasn’t anything in the Ruins to kill anymore. They had come across Sans and Toriel sitting by the black tree that has no leaves and froze and then Toriel invited them in for tea and pie. They agreed and followed Toriel into the house without sparing a glance at Sans.

While there, they painted a story for their hosts. An incomplete story, but a story nonetheless. They spoke of the town hero, Frisk, how they fell to the Underground but realized too late that they wanted to live. How they were attacked, over and over again, and sometimes they tried to spare the monsters but they became overwhelmed and began to kill out of fear. How they went through the entire world and killed each time they were attacked because they were trying to defend themselves. The human mentioned two monsters in particular Frisk had spared, one because she was the only mother they would have and the other because she accused them of being a murderer and they wanted to prove that they weren’t.

Sans was surprised. He thought that the humans would assume that the monsters were a myth after so long of being trapped. As it turns out, not only do human sorcerers still exist—albeit in weaker and smaller numbers—but there were a few (very few) monsters who had escaped the fate of exile, and their descendants were roaming the continent to this day.

(The human didn’t mention how these monsters live in fear and prejudice, how they were nearly slaves for their magic, how they nearly wished they were underground with the others, how someone would spit on them and all others would laugh—they didn’t mention this because they didn’t know to mention it. This treatment was completely normal, after all.)

Toriel knew this story. Sans had told her, a long time ago, of the different timelines, the different paths Frisk had taken (kill everybody; kill nobody; kill only one) and how, in this time—the one they apparently thought was best, the one they chose to settle in—Toriel and Undyne were the only ones to survive against them. She knew this. She’s heard this before. But, somehow, this human makes it even more real, they paint Frisk as a hero, they are loved in their town and they are one of the oldest there. They paint the relentless killer as the suffering saint.

Toriel does not know what to think about them anymore. She does not tell Sans this, and he doesn’t know.

Eventually, the human is done with their pie and their tea and their story and so they leave. Toriel doesn’t make much of an attempt to stop them, because they are orange and they are an adult and she knows her efforts will be fruitless (and, secretly, she wants to see the stars again).

It’s nearly two weeks later when she hears word of the broken barrier, long after all the other monsters have invaded the surface. Sans continues not to question where she hears her information. He suspects it has to do with wherever she manages to buy groceries.

They leave the Ruins. They bring nothing. They pass by Snowdin, and Waterfall, and Hotland, and they would ask the River Person for a ride except they have gone too and Sans would take Toriel on a shortcut except it’s been far too long since he has been able to walk through his home. Everything is empty. They reach the Core.

They do not go to the coffins in the room below.

They go to the Throne Room. Undyne’s shiny silver throne is empty and beginning to gather dust, and this time there are two seats in the back covered in cloth.

They find the room where the barrier was, and they go further.  
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-  
There was a forest beneath the mountain, and in the distance, a town. Toriel says she believes that it’s where Frisk is from. Neither of them believe that Frisk is there anymore.

The walk through the forest is pleasant, and stargazing in the clearing they settled on even more so. Sans never hoped to believe he’d be able to see actual stars in this timeline, despite what he promised Toriel (he promised that, when they finally get to the surface, they would stare at the stars and he would point them all out to her, and then he promised that they would enjoy rainstorms together. With her, it was always “when”).

Sans and Toriel never really left that clearing. It was perfect for watching the sunset and sunrise through the trees, there were no leaves or branches overhead to cover the sky, and there was an abundance of berry bushes close by. Eventually a small shack had appeared at the edge of the space—only used for sleeping, and only then sometimes, because the outside world was a gift neither of them wanted to take for granted.

The months passed. There were picnics and jokes and they could never forget their sadness but they had learned to be happy with it in the Ruins and it was much easier to be happy with it in a (nearly) perfect world.

There is no talk about the war.

\------------------------------------------------

He doesn’t remember how long he’s been wandering around the forest before he starts crying.

It was inevitable. He is ten years old, he doesn’t know if his family is alive, he’s been living on berries and weeds and sleeping under sticks and grass and he grew up talking to someone every day but now there is no one but him.

Regardless, he is ashamed. He’s fine, he’s okay, he is alive and surviving and before this he was never allowed to go into the forest alone so that’s good, right?

But he sobs and he sobs and he sometimes forgets to breathe in and his back is rattling with the effort. In the edges of his vision there are arms, reaching out to grab him, to take his soul and crush it and tell him that he’s fine because it’s his kind that are the truly soulless ones. He is terrified and it makes him cry harder.

He doesn’t know how long it takes, but eventually he runs out of tears and he gets his breath back and he stands back up and starts walking because he is fine. He’s okay now.

Eventually he finds some sticks and leaves and grass and creates a makeshift shelter that’s only big enough to lie down in. He crawls inside.

He doesn’t sleep.  
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-  
The next day he opens his eyes. There’s sunlight beyond the leaves, and he takes that as his cue to start moving again. He can’t really remember why he needs to keep going through the forest, but he feels safer the farther he walks.

With relish he kicks off the large branch that was supporting the smaller twigs and leaves, and the debris flutters on and around him. This, he believes, must be the best part about not having adult supervision—being able to wake up whenever he feels like and kicking whatever he wants. It’s pretty great.

He stands up and bends to get the branch he’s been carting around. He doesn’t have any of his actual belongings with him, so he grabbed the largest branch he could find to carry with him because it felt weird not to own anything. It’s served him well thus far.

The only thing he does to prepare for his continued journey is look around and pick a direction he hasn’t come from. He suspects that this method has been bringing him closer to Mt Ebott, but he reasons that all the monsters have probably left by now so it’s safe. Safer than anywhere else nearby, at least.

And so he walks.

And walks.

Sometimes he sits down to rest his legs, but lately being still during the day is a bad thought. It’s easier for things to spot him with the sun out, and even though he doesn’t think there are any monsters around that area he thinks that it’s also worse to be still in the light.

He’s been in the forest a long time, he thinks, and he’s been walking for most of that time. His sweater is in tatters and his shorts are stained and he has scratches on his legs and he is used to all of this and he thinks it’s a habit by now to wake up and pick a direction and walk.

This day is different, though. It’s a strange break in routine

He walks, and at one point he hears the soft murmuring of voices saying indistinguishable things. At first he thinks he’s imagining it, because it wouldn’t be the first time to think that the wind is voices, but as he continues walking it gets louder and less indistinguishable and he thinks at least one person is laughing very, very hard.

He’s excited. Of course he is, these are people, they’re humans, and he doesn’t know when the last time he properly talked to someone was (he’s still not sure if the monsters count) but it has been too long and he has the potential to be happy now.

He starts to run, even though his legs are aching, they have been ever since he stood up that morning, but he runs and steps on every branch and he’s not sure if the voices are still there but he follows them anyway.

Then he stops, because he is at a small clearing, and he can see Mt Ebott at a distance, and in the middle are not humans and they are staring

right

at

_him_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> lol sans and tori got some serious issues. so does that kid apparently. again i'm really sorry about my extreme lack of organizational skills i plan absolutely nothing and i literally never proofread/edit. but hey w/e y'know ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯  
> (though i've noticed that sometimes words go missing... tell me if you see a place where that happens, yeah?)


	2. monsters

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> they weren't humans. they were monsters.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i want you to know that i wrote this while listening to the Aladdin soundtrack. i don't suggest you do the same. it might ruin the mood, even though i am of the opinion that there is never a wrong time for Aladdin.
> 
> Warnings- panic attack, and i'm pretty sure the kid has ptsd or something

They stopped talking when they heard someone running towards them.

Sans was afraid it might be a human. Toriel was hoping it might be a human. They both knew what the other was thinking.

At the edge of their clearing, someone in a striped sweater appeared. They had leaves and twigs in their hair and clothes and their legs were scraped and red. They were panting and shaking. When they spotted the two monsters, their eyes got wide and they stopped moving.

It was a human.

Toriel stepped closer.

“Hello, my child,” she began in a soft voice, “are you lost?”

Sans wanted to mention how terrified the human looked, how they appeared hopeful when they first arrived but seemingly lost all function when they realized what they were looking at. He’s pretty sure Toriel already noticed, though, so he kept silent, staring at the human.

With their too-long hair and wide eyes and dirty sweater they looked almost too much like the last human Sans knew.

As Toriel walked closer, the human’s breath started up again. And it kept on going, and going, and going until they were hyperventilating and it looked like they were about to pass out.

Toriel was very worried, then, and so she reached out a large paw-

\------------------------------

They weren’t humans, they were monsters.

One was a _skeleton_ , except it didn’t really look like any human skeleton he’s seen, it was _deformed-_

and there was a goat, a seven foot tall goat, who had horns and claws and **t e e t h** -

He remembered the last monster he’d seen, the last thing he talked to, and it had teeth just like that except they were larger and sharper and their entire face was made of those teeth and he heard it again, yelling at him, blaming him, telling him that he was just as soulless as the others and

The goat is moving towards him. It wants to take his soul, it wants to show him that he doesn’t really need it, the monster is already yelling at him-

Suddenly he can’t breathe. He needs air, he tries to inhale, but he just gasps and it still feels like he’s choking, so he does it again, and again, and again, and he doesn’t know why he’s still drowning when he’s still standing with the ground under his feet.

The monster is closer, and he thinks it’s reaching out a hand. He wants to run but he feels too heavy, he doesn’t know how he can stay upright with all this weight. He still can’t breathe. He wants to break down crying again. He’s going to die.

The paw settles on his shoulder. It’s warm. It’s soft. It’s large.

It’s going to crush him.

He’s terrified.

\-----------------------------

“hey, uh, tori? i think you might wanna remove your hand. that kid looks pretty scared.”

Toriel glances at Sans, then settles her gaze back on the human. He was right. They seemed close to fainting. She quickly pulled back her hand and stepped closer to Sans, though the child didn't seem to notice. They were shivering now. It was too warm for anyone to be shivering.

"Are they... having a panic attack?" Toriel asked. "Chara used to have them. All the time. I wanted to help them, but... every time someone tried to get closer, it would make them worse."

Sans remembers what she told him about Chara. With the kind of humans they were raised by, he wasn't surprised with this information.

"well, what did you do then? because, uh, i'd rather not have a dead human laying on our doorstep." On second thought, that might not have been the best thing to say. Not only did Toriel glare at him, but it seemed to make her more determined to help.

"First I'd get everyone out of the room, and then I would crouch a small ways away and talk to them. So I would like to ask you to go inside, Sans."

"but-"

_"Sans."_

Sans went in the shack.

The human's eyes were glazed over. Toriel thought that this might be for the best- it would be easier for them to listen to her if they could not see her as a monster. She crouched where she stood, and started whispering half-remembered sentences.

Breathe, she asked, breathe with me. 1, 2, 3. Yes, that is very good. You are safe here. No one wants to hurt you.

You are safe.

The human listened, seeming to calm down. Their breathing evened out. They stopped shivering.

They fainted anyway.

\--------------------------------

He waited, waited, waited for the hand on his shoulder to reach inside and take his soul, but it never did. Instead, it left.

But that didn't matter. They were still going to kill him, he knew, and he still isn't sure if he deserves it.

Black arms appeared at the edge of his vision again, twining together and around him, and he thinks it's their fault that he's still choking. He wants it to stop, he wants it to stop, he doesn't want to be here, he wishes he were okay again, they're getting closer they're getting closer he thinks he can hear the yelling again and they're yelling at him he's going to die he's going to die they're going to take his soul

The arms take almost his entire vision. He can't see what's happening anymore. He can only see the black and the teeth saying how can he be so soulless even with a soul just like the rest of his kind

There is another voice, suddenly, warm and soft and it's whispering, not yelling. He doesn't know where it's coming from. He can't remember where he is. The voice starts to tell him to breathe, but he can't, the arms are choking him, but then there's counting and it's easier to figure when to inhale and when to exhale and it feels like his lungs are working again. You are safe, he hears, you are not in danger.

The arms are gone. He can feel himself again. He realizes that he was shaking, but now he's not. He starts to believe that he'll be okay.

But he's tired, he's been walking every day for weeks, he never gets sleep and this was the second breakdown in two days. His eyes are closed. He doesn't know who was talking to him.

He goes to sleep.  
-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-  
There's something soft on top of him. His hair feels clean. He thinks he smells food, proper food, and it makes him want to jump out of whatever bed he's in and eat until he's ready to crawl back in and go to sleep. This is the best he's felt since...

Other humans must have found him, he thinks. They must have scared off the monsters and taken him back to a safe place where all the other people fled. Maybe his family is here. Maybe he can be safe for the rest of his life and not worry about anything.

He opens his eyes. In front of him, on the ground, there is a large slice of pie, and it smells amazing. When he sits up the quilt that was laying over him falls off, but he pays it no mind and sits on the ground next to the plate. It's been too long since he's had an actual meal. He picks up the pie and eats it with his hands, and he's lucky that it's just warm and not burning.

When he finishes, he looks around. He realizes that this is less of a room and more of a small cabin, or shack. There is the bed he was sleeping on (it seems to be at least larger than a twin-sized mattress), and across from that is a door that doesn't seem to have a knob or any sort of lock. He thinks he can just swing it right open.

Against the wall is a sort of counter, and on top of that is a pie with a slice cut out. He wants to eat more of it, but it looks very intimidating.

The only other thing in the room is a small nightstand next to the bed. There is a folded note on it. He leaves it alone at first, because he does not want to invade the privacy of his hosts, but as he goes to crawl back into the bed he sees that it says "TO THE HUMAN" on top. He opens it.

_Human,_

_Please do not be afraid. We wish you no harm. We want to help you. After you fainted, my friend and I cleaned off all the leaves and sticks on you and carried you into our house. I admit that I may have also washed your hair. Please remember your hygiene, you can get very sick if you continue on like this._  
_I do not know if you can recall, but you stumbled upon our little clearing earlier, and you had a panic attack. My friend says that the sight of monsters is probably the thing that "set you off." We think you are from the nearby town, in which case I understand why you would react that way. I am very sorry._  
_I managed to calm you down, but you fainted. It had me very worried. My friend says that it is from exhaustion, and that you have most likely not been getting enough sleep. I agree. Please do not leave until you are well-rested, but do not think that I am forcing you to stay here. I am only asking._  
_There is one last thing you need to know- my name is Toriel. You saw me before. I am the large goat-like monster. My friend's name is Sans, and he is a skeleton. You also saw him before._  
_I realize that you are afraid of us but please believe me when I say that we only want to help you. We are not going to hurt you._  
_Help yourself to as much pie as you want. It is butterscotch-cinnamon pie. I was originally planning on making snail pie, as that is much more nutritious, but Sans told me that snails are not very popular with humans, as if I do not remember that fact._

_With much sincerity,  
Toriel_

He was wrong. Humans didn't save him from the monsters. The monsters are still here. They claim that they won't hurt him, but he doesn't know. What if the pie is poison? What if they planned to have him die slowly, or bring him to the edge and then crush him? He doesn't know. He can't know. He's not okay anymore. He wants to leave, he wants to sneak away and pretend that he never saw these creatures, but he figures that they must be waiting outside for him to come out so they can pounce on him. He can't leave.

He grabs the quilt and hides under the bed.

\------------------------------------

"Sans?"

"yeah, tori? whassup?"

"Do you think the human will ever not be afraid of us?"

"i dunno. can't say. they were... pretty scared, tori, i'm not sure if they'll be able to get over that kind of trauma."

"Okay."

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Sans?"

"yeah?"

"Can you please point out the constellations? The stars are beautiful tonight."

"'course, tori."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> the characters are like actually interacting now and i feel like i didn't write them well at all. especially that letter. i have no idea what i'm doing.


	3. empress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A brief intermission to look at our monarch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i literally just wrote two other fanfictions while i was busy not updating this. it almost became three fics, but i paced myself so i guess that other one'll come soon enough (even though i _really_ need to work on my senior project because that's due this friday lol)
> 
> Warnings- humans being mean to monsters, regular war things i guess. overusage of words like "kill" and "murder," among many others. random switching between present and past tense. unhappiness all around. maybe i should make that a tag.

 Undyne vividly remembered the day that she swore she would hunt down and kill the human that had murdered all her friends.

She had been furious- her friends were killed without hesitation, but they spared  _her?_ Why? It was, Undyne had no doubt, to taunt her, show her how weak she was. _"Look at this, I'm sparing you just so you can live on and see what I've done, how you weren't able to prevent any of it. I spared you because I wanted too, and I could've spared everyone else, but I didn't. I killed them because I felt like it and there's no other reason."_

Undyne wished she had wringed their neck instead of letting them go. She can't remember why she showed them mercy so long ago. It was because of her that they were able to go on and kill everyone else. Maybe if she got rid of them when she had the chance Alphys would still be alive.

There are many things Undyne regrets concerning Alphys.

So she swore to take revenge. To hunt down and kill the human the first chance she gets, have them suffer through what the monsters did. She promised to do what Asgore couldn't. Nobody wanted a kind ruler anymore.

It was recently that a human with an orange soul finally fell down. It was easy to kill them. Undyne crossed the barrier as quickly as she could.

When she was younger, she dreamed of how she would look at the sun for the first time, maybe standing with someone else, so they could gaze into the horizon together and inevitably kiss. It would've been incredibly romantic. Alphys would've agreed.

Instead, the first thing Undyne saw was night. She did not pay attention to the stars. She did not look at the forest or the deer or anything else besides the town in the distance and then the humans screaming at her.

It wasn't too hard to find the human there. They were old, and frail, and utterly terrified when she found them. They were begging for the same mercy she gave them so long ago. They were crying. Undyne did not make the same mistake she did last time. The affair was short and disappointing and provided no amount of relief. She felt the same amount of sorrow as she did before they were dead.

She only needed four more human souls to break the barrier after that, and she collected them methodically and without passion. It's been years since Undyne really did anything passionately. She couldn't really muster it up anymore, not the same way she used to. She let the souls go after she was done with them and then they just... disappeared.

The others came. They took that first town quickly, in the shock that was left after Undyne arrived. Humans no longer knew how to deal with monsters. Almost all of the monsters survived and almost all of the humans didn't. None of the souls were absorbed.

The war only truly started in the months that followed. They started fighting armies instead of scared people, though that didn't stop the monsters from gaining ground. Instead of a small town now they had multiple cities. There were more losses on the human side than the monster side. For once, things were looking up for them.

Other monsters joined them, too. Ones that grew up on the surface. Undyne had no idea that they existed, though apparently when the monsters were first trapped underground there were some who managed to escape. These were their descendants. 

At first, she was afraid that they were fighting for the species they lived with. But then they told stories about how they were hit with stones and jeered at and how they always had to look down in public and how even though they could technically get a job anywhere they wanted the only places they would be hired were the ones that wanted their magic, and every single day they were worked to exhaustion until they got sick but they still went the next day because they couldn't afford to take a break. Many of them died because of this. Humans did nothing for them.

There were other things they told her, too. She didn't want to think about those things.

Undyne saw these monsters that grew up with the sun but were more trapped than they ever were, and she realized that she would always hate the humans, and that there could be no peace between them. She also realized that she was very, very tired.

Even though she's just as capable as she ever was she isn't young anymore. Many monsters have only ever known her as their leader. They couldn't remember a King that would always accept visitors and would smile and believe that everyone was kind. They could only remember their stoic and vengeful ruler, forgetting the loud, energetic royal guardsman she was. Her friends wouldn't recognize her like this.

Sometimes, Undyne wished she left the Queen in charge.

But thinking of the Queen made her remember Sans, and thinking of Sans always led her to Papyrus. He would've been her most loyal subject. He would've followed her rule. He would've been part of the war like everyone else. He would've hated every second of it. She misses him so, so much  ~~though she guiltily knows that she will always miss Alphys the most~~.

Sans is living with the Queen by Mt Ebott. Undyne knows that they will stay there and never move. She wishes that she could go live with them, though she thinks that there have been bridges burned in the years they haven't been communicating.

Besides, there is a war, and her people need an empress.

(no matter how tired and regretful the empress is)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm not a person who usually gets sad by what i myself write but i just want undyne to live happily with alphys okay i can't handle sad endings ~~even though this entire story is basically a sad ending~~
> 
> okay so this chapter was written over such a long period of time (that is, a week) that i completely forgot what my original goal for it was. i also have no idea if this is leading to some larger plot. ~~also i totally added something like symbolism in there i think aren't i cool~~

**Author's Note:**

> my undertale blog is flowersalesman.tumblr.com if you wanna find me (though it's also a blog for flowers sometimes. i like flowers)


End file.
